Black Veil Brides’ Andy Biersack: ‘Rock and Roll Is in a Difficult Place Right Now’

Last year, KISS' Gene Simmons made headlines with the comment in an interview that "rock is finally dead." In the months that followed, many a musician has weighed in on the topic in a variety of interviews, with some digging a little deeper into Simmons' full discussion and others just glossing over the headline. Black Veil Brides' Andy Biersack is the latest to speak on the subject and offered some more in-depth comments on the state of rock.

Speaking with Kaaos TV, as seen in the video above, Biersack stated, "I think that statement was a little misconstrued. I think what he was trying to say, and what probably wouldn't have gotten the big headline, is that the reality is that rock and roll, in the mainstream, it's in a difficult place right now. People don't buy music, and they certainly don't buy rock bands' music in the way that they used to. And so, for our genre, it's kind of … We're limping along when it comes to public appeal."

The vocalist continued, "It's really up to the kids who listen to rock music to get out there, come to the live shows and buy the records when they can and really support the genre. Otherwise, it will get taken away from us, because the hip-hop fans and the pop fans, they buy the records and they go to the shows in big numbers. So I think it's a little bit of both. But I believe that rock and roll is alive and well. I just think that people need to show their support and let the genre keep thriving."

That opened up to a bigger conversation about the future of rock and the bands that will be the major tour acts of the future. "The current touring community is ... really, the large arenas and stadiums and shed shows are all predicated on the idea of older artists. In five or ten years, when those artists cannot tour anymore, we're gonna see a huge shift in concerts and concert attendance," says Biersack, who sees bands like Avenged Sevenfold and Slipknot as acts who could move beyond the arena-sized venues into the spots currently reserved for rock's elder statesmen.